I 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1515 

To provide driver safety grants to States with graduated driver licensing 

laws that meet certain minimum requirements. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 13, 2011 

Mr. BISHOP of New York (for himself, Mr. HULTGREN, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, 

Mr. HOLDEN, Mr. HONDA, Mr. ISRAEL, Ms. SPEIER, Mrs. CAPPS, and 

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois) introduced the following bill; which was referred 

to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 

A BILL 

To provide driver safety grants to States with graduated 

driver licensing laws that meet certain minimum requirements. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Safe Teen and Novice 

5 Driver Uniform Protection Act of 2011’’ or the 

6 ‘‘STANDUP Act’’. 

7 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

8 Congress finds the following: 


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1 (1) The National Highway Traffic Safety Ad2 ministration has reported that— 

3 (A) motor vehicle crashes are the leading 

4 cause of death of Americans between 15 and 20 

5 years of age; 

6 (B) between 1999 and 2009, more than 

7 90,000 Americans were killed in motor vehicle 

8 crashes involving drivers between 15 and 20 

9 years of age, an average of 155 deaths per 

10 week; 

11 (C) drivers between 16 and 20 years of age 

12 have a fatality rate that is 4 times higher than 

13 the rate for drivers between 25 and 70 years of 

14 age; and 

15 (D) teenage drivers who are 16 years of 

16 age have a motor vehicle crash rate that is al17 most 10 times higher than the crash rate for 

18 drivers between 30 and 60 years of age. 

19 (2) The National Transportation Safety Board 

20 found that during the most recent 10-year period— 

21 (A) teen drivers comprised less than 7 per22 cent of the driving population and accounted 

23 for more than 13 percent of drivers involved in 

24 all deadly crashes; and 


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1 (B) more than 20 percent of all highway 

2 fatalities occurred in crashes that involved teen 

3 drivers. 

4 (3) Analysis by the Children’s Hospital of 

5 Philadelphia Research Institute shows that— 

6 (A) teenage drivers comprise approximately 

7 40 percent of the fatalities in motor vehicle 

8 crashes in which they are involved; and 

9 (B) the other 60 percent of the fatalities in 

10 those crashes are— 

11 (i) passengers who were riding in the 

12 vehicle with the teen driver; 

13 (ii) drivers and passengers in other 

14 vehicles involved in a crash with the teen 

15 driver’s vehicle; and 

16 (iii) pedestrians. 

17 (4) According to the Insurance Institute for 

18 Highway Safety— 

19 (A) the chance that a vehicle driven by a 

20 16- or 17-year-old will be involved in an acci21 dent— 

22 (i) doubles when there are 2 other 

23 teens in the vehicle; and 

24 (ii) quadruples when there are 4 teens 

25 in the vehicle; 


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1 (B) States with strong nighttime driving 

2 restrictions experience lower fatal crash rates 

3 among drivers ages 15 to 17 years old; and 

4 (C) a higher age requirement for licensing 

5 teen drivers is correlated with a lower number 

6 of fatal crashes per capita. 

7 (5) The National Highway Traffic Safety Ad8 ministration has found that distraction caused by 

9 cellular phones is significant enough to degrade driv10 er performance, and is particularly dangerous for in11 experienced drivers between 15 and 20 years of age. 

12 (6) That National Transportation Safety Board 

13 has found that although only 20 percent of driving 

14 by teenage drivers occurs at night, more than 50 

15 percent of the motor vehicle crash fatalities involving 

16 teenage drivers occur at night. 

17 (7) According to a 2007 report from the Texas 

18 Transportation Institute at Texas A & M Univer19 sity— 

20 (A) teenage drivers in rural areas are less 

21 likely to be aware of the risks and dangers as22 sociated with driving, placing them at higher 

23 risk of involvement in crashes; 

24 (B) teen drivers are more likely than other 

25 drivers— 


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1 (i) to drive with other teenage pas2 sengers; 

3 (ii) to drive late at night; 

4 (iii) to exceed the speed limit; 

5 (iv) to use cell phones while driving; 

6 and 

7 (v) to fail to use seat belts while driv8 ing. 

9 (8) The National Highway Traffic Safety Ad10 ministration reports that although 23 percent of the 

11 population of the United States lives in rural areas, 

12 57 percent of all traffic fatalities occur on rural 

13 roads, underscoring the elevated crash risk for teen 

14 drivers in rural areas. 

15 (9) The American Academy of Pediatrics has 

16 found evidence that the area of the brain responsible 

17 for planning, impulse control, and executive decision18 making does not fully mature until a person is be19 tween 20 and 25 years of age, placing teen drivers 

20 at greater risk of being involved in an accident. 

21 (10) The Journal of the American Medical As22 sociation reports that after Michigan and North 

23 Carolina adopted comprehensive graduated driver li24 censing systems in 1997, crashes involving 16-yearVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:33 Apr 15, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1515.IH H1515

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1 old drivers decreased by 25 percent in Michigan and 

2 by 27 percent in North Carolina. 

3 (11) According to the Office of the Illinois Sec4 retary of State, teen driving deaths dropped by over 

5 40 percent in Illinois in the first full year following 

6 the 2007 implementation of a stronger graduated 

7 driver licensing law. 

8 (12) The National Transportation Safety Board 

9 reports that over 40 States and the District of Co10 lumbia have implemented some type of 3-stage grad11 uated driver licensing system. However, most States 

12 have not yet enacted all of the lifesaving safety fea13 tures of graduated driver licensing laws rec14 ommended by the National Transportation Safety 

15 Board and supported by research to protect the lives 

16 of teenage and novice drivers. 

17 (13) A 2010 national survey by the Insurance 

18 Institute of Highway Safety indicates that— 

19 (A) parents of teens favor graduated driver 

20 licensing laws that are as strict or stricter than 

21 those that currently exist in any State; 

(B) 2 22 ⁄3 of parents of teens believe that 

23 young drivers should begin learning to drive at 

24 16 years of age or older; 


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(C) more than 1 1 ⁄2 of parents of teens be2 lieve that the minimum licensing age should be 

3 17 years of age or older; 

4 (D) 90 percent of parents of teens support 

5 a restriction on unsupervised nighttime driving; 

6 (E) more than 75 percent of parents of 

7 teens believe that the restriction on unsuper8 vised nighttime driving should begin at 10 p.m. 

9 or earlier; 

10 (F) 89 percent of parents of teens support 

11 restrictions on teen passengers; and 

12 (G) more than 75 percent of parents of 

13 teens believe that teen drivers should not be 

14 permitted to more than 1 teen passenger in 

15 their vehicle. 

16 SEC. 3. STATE GRADUATED DRIVER LICENSING LAWS. 

17 (a) MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—A State is in compliance 

19 with this section if the State has a graduated driver 

20 licensing law that requires novice drivers younger 

21 than 21 years of age to comply with the 2-stage li22 censing process described in paragraph (2) before 

23 receiving an unrestricted driver’s license. 

24 (2) LICENSING PROCESS.—A State is in compli25 ance with the 2-stage licensing process described in 


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1 this paragraph if the State’s driver’s license laws in2 clude— 

3 (A) a learner’s permit stage that— 

4 (i) commences at 16 years of age or 

5 older; 

6 (ii) is at least 6 months in duration; 

7 (iii) prohibits the driver from using a 

8 cellular telephone or any communications 

9 device in a nonemergency situation; and 

10 (iv) remains in effect until— 

11 (I) the commencement of the in12 termediate stage; or 

13 (II) the driver reaches 18 years 

14 of age; 

15 (B) an intermediate stage that— 

16 (i) commences immediately after the 

17 expiration of the learner’s permit stage; 

18 (ii) is at least 6 months in duration; 

19 (iii) prohibits the driver from using a 

20 cellular telephone or any communications 

21 device in a nonemergency situation; 

22 (iv) prohibits driving at night; 

23 (v) prohibits the driver from operating 

24 a motor vehicle with more than 1 non-fa25 milial passenger younger than 21 years of 


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1 age unless a licensed driver who is at least 

2 21 years of age is in the motor vehicle; and 

3 (vi) remains in effect until the driver 

4 reaches 18 years of age; and 

5 (C) any other requirement that the Sec6 retary of Transportation may require, includ7 ing— 

8 (i) in the learner’s permit stage— 

9 (I) at least 40 hours of behind10 the-wheel training with a licensed 

11 driver who is at least 21 years of age; 

12 (II) a driver training course; and 

13 (III) a requirement that any such 

14 driver be accompanied and supervised 

15 by a licensed driver who is at least 21 

16 years of age at all times while such 

17 driver is operating a motor vehicle; 

18 and 

19 (ii) in the learner’s permit or inter20 mediate stage, a requirement that, in addi21 tion to any other penalties imposed by 

22 State law, the grant of an unrestricted 

23 driver’s license be automatically delayed 

24 for any individual who, during the learn25 er’s permit or intermediate stage, is conVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:33 Apr 15, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1515.IH H1515

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1 victed of a driving-related offense, such 

2 as— 

3 (I) driving while intoxicated; 

4 (II) misrepresentation of his or 

5 her true age; 

6 (III) reckless driving; 

7 (IV) driving without wearing a 

8 seat belt; 

9 (V) speeding; or 

10 (VI) any other driving-related of11 fense, as determined by the Secretary. 

12 (b) RULEMAKING.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Transpor14 tation shall promulgate regulations necessary to im15 plement this section in accordance with the notice 

16 and comment provisions under section 553 of title 5, 

17 United States. 

18 (2) EXCEPTION.—A State that otherwise meets 

19 the minimum requirements set forth in subsection 

20 (a) shall be deemed by the Secretary to be in compli21 ance with this section regardless of whether a State 

22 law, which was enacted by the State before January 

23 1, 2011, establishes a class of license that permits 

24 licensees younger than 18 years of age to drive a 

25 motor vehicle in connection with work performed on 


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1 or for the operation of a farm owned by family mem2 bers who are directly related to the licensees. 

3 SEC. 4. INCENTIVE GRANTS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—For each of the first 3 fiscal years 

5 beginning after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec6 retary of Transportation shall award a grant to any State 

7 that submits an application under subsection (b) if that 

8 State is in compliance with section 3(a) on or before the 

9 first day of that fiscal year. 

10 (b) APPLICATION.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Any State desiring a grant 

12 under this section shall submit an application to the 

13 Secretary of Transportation at such time, in such 

14 manner, and containing such information as the Sec15 retary may require, including a certification by the 

16 Governor of the State that the State is in compli17 ance with section 3(a). 

18 (2) REVIEW.—The Secretary shall review each 

19 State application and determine whether or not the 

20 State is in compliance with section 3(a). 

21 (c) GRANTS.—Amounts appropriated to carry out 

22 this section for each fiscal year shall be apportioned to 

23 each State that is in compliance with section 3(a) in an 

24 amount determined by multiplying— 


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1 (1) the amount appropriated to carry out this 

2 section for such fiscal year; by 

3 (2) the ratio that the amount of funds appor4 tioned to each such State for such fiscal year under 

5 section 402 of title 23, United States Code, bears to 

6 the total amount of funds apportioned to all such 

7 States for such fiscal year under such section. 

8 (d) USE OF FUNDS.—Amounts received by a State 

9 from a grant awarded under this section may be used 

10 for— 

11 (1) enforcing a 2-stage licensing process that 

12 complies with section 3(a)(2); 

13 (2) training for law enforcement personnel and 

14 other relevant State agency personnel relating to the 

15 enforcement described in paragraph (1); 

16 (3) publishing relevant educational materials 

17 that pertain directly or indirectly to the State grad18 uated driver licensing law; and 

19 (4) carrying out other administrative activities 

20 that the Secretary considers relevant to the State’s 

21 2-stage licensing process. 

22 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

23 authorized to be appropriated $25,000,000, out of the 

24 Highway Trust Fund (other than the Mass Transit AcVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:33 Apr 15, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1515.IH H1515

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1 count), to carry out this section during each fiscal year 

2 described in subsection (a). 

3 (f) APPLICABILITY OF CHAPTER 1.—The provisions 

4 contained in section 402(d) of title 23, United States 

5 Code, apply to this section. 

6 SEC. 5. WITHHOLDING OF FUNDS FOR NONCOMPLIANCE. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

8 (1) FOURTH FISCAL YEAR.—On the first day of 

9 the fourth fiscal year beginning after the date of the 

10 enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall withhold 

11 3 percent of the amount otherwise required to be ap12 portioned to any State for such fiscal year under 

13 each of the paragraphs (1), (3), and (4) of section 

14 104(b) of title 23, United States Code, if the State 

15 is not in compliance with section 3(a) on the first 

16 day of such fiscal year. 

17 (2) FIFTH FISCAL YEAR.—On the first day of 

18 the fifth fiscal year beginning after the date of the 

19 enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall withhold 

20 5 percent of the amount otherwise required to be ap21 portioned to any State for such fiscal year under 

22 each of the paragraphs (1), (3), and (4) of section 

23 104(b) of title 23, United States Code, if that State 

24 is not in compliance with section 3(a) on the first 

25 day of such fiscal year. 


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1 (3) SIXTH AND SUBSEQUENT FISCAL YEARS.— 

2 On the first day of each fiscal year after the fifth 

3 fiscal year beginning after the date of the enactment 

4 of this Act, the Secretary shall withhold 10 percent 

5 of the amount otherwise required to be apportioned 

6 to any State for such fiscal year under each of the 

7 paragraphs (1), (3), and (4) of section 104(b) of 

8 title 23, United States Code, if that State is not in 

9 compliance with section 3(a) on the first day of such 

10 fiscal year. 

11 (b) PERIOD OF AVAILABILITY OF WITHHELD

12 FUNDS.— 

13 (1) FUNDS WITHHELD BEFORE THE END OF

14 THE SIXTH FISCAL YEAR.—Any amount withheld 

15 from any State under subsection (a) on or before the 

16 last day of the sixth fiscal year beginning after the 

17 date of the enactment of this Act, shall remain avail18 able for distribution to the State under subsection 

19 (c) until the end of the third fiscal year following the 

20 fiscal year for which such amount is appropriated. 

21 (2) FUNDS WITHHELD AFTER THE SIXTH FIS22 CAL YEAR.—Any amount withheld under subsection 

23 (a)(2) from any State after the end of the sixth fis24 cal year beginning after the date of the enactment 

25 of this Act, may not be distributed to the State. 


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1 (c) APPORTIONMENT OF WITHHELD FUNDS AFTER

2 COMPLIANCE.— 

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—If, before the last day of the 

4 period for which funds withheld under subsection (a) 

5 remain available to a State under subsection (b), the 

6 State comes into compliance with section 3(a), the 

7 Secretary of Transportation shall, on the first day 

8 on which the Secretary determines the State has 

9 come into compliance, distribute to the State any 

10 amounts withheld under subsection (a) that remains 

11 available for apportionment to the State. 

12 (2) PERIOD OF AVAILABILITY OF SUBSE13 QUENTLY APPORTIONED FUNDS.—Any amount dis14 tributed under paragraph (1) shall remain available 

15 for expenditure by the State until the end of the 

16 third fiscal year following the year for which the 

17 funds are so apportioned. Any amount not expended 

18 by the State by the end of such period shall lapse. 

19 (3) EFFECT OF NONCOMPLIANCE.—If a State is 

20 not in compliance with section 3(a) at the end of the 

21 period for which any amount withheld under sub22 section (a) remains available for distribution to the 

23 State under subsection (b), such amount shall lapse. 

Æ 


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